Passage of Burma media bill would reverse free press gains

March 17, 2014

His Excellency Thein Sein

President

Republic of the Union of Burma

Ministry of the President's Office

Naypyidaw, Burma

Via facsimile: +95-1-652-624

Dear President Thein Sein:

We are writing to express our concern about shrinking press
freedom in Burma and urge you to veto media legislation that was passed this
month by your country's parliament. The bill, which awaits your signature,
maintains a censorship role for state authorities and threatens to reverse
several of the gains achieved to date under your democratic reform
program. 

The Printers
and Publishers Registration Bill, which was drafted by the Ministry of
Information without the input of journalists, fails through various provisions
to free the press from decades of heavy-handed state oversight. In
particular, the legislation bans broadly the publication of any materials that
"insult religion," "disturb the rule of law," "incite
unrest," "violate the constitution," or "harm ethnic
unity."

Moreover, a newly created registrar under the legislation
will have sweeping discretionary power to issue and revoke publishing licenses.
CPJ research shows that similar bodies in other countries frequently abuse
their authority for political purposes, pressuring publications with the threat
of revoking their licenses into self-censoring coverage of topics deemed
sensitive.

These provisions are inconsistent with your calls in previous
speeches for the press to function as the "fourth pillar" of your country's new
democratic order. While CPJ has welcomed certain Burmese policies toward the
press, including the release
of imprisoned journalists and the ending of
pre-publication censorship of news journals in 2012, more recent
events have contradicted your pledges to allow for greater press freedom.

A case in point are the Official Secrets Act charges recently
pressed against four
Unity Weekly journalists for
their coverage of an alleged chemical weapons facility in Burma's central
region. If convicted of the broad and ill-defined charges, they each face 14
years in prison. Your government has also recently taken steps to restrict
foreign reporting by curbing the duration of journalist visas and blocking
access to violence-wracked areas of the country.

These actions point to a mounting clampdown on press freedom
similar to the repression journalists faced under the military junta in which
you served as prime minister. Your government could restore confidence in its reform
intention by scrapping the media legislation that now awaits your approval and by
moving to revoke Burma's other laws that are used to harass, threaten, and jail
journalists.

Thank you for your attention. We look forward to your prompt
reply.

Sincerely,

Joel Simon

Executive Director

CC List:

Sai Mauk Kham, vice president of Burma

Derek Mitchell, U.S. ambassador to Burma

Than Swe, Burma ambassador to U.S.

Roland Kobia, EU ambassador to Burma

http://www.information.myanmaronlinecentre.com/passage-of-burma-media-bill-would-reverse-free-press-gains/